Hacker Sabu Freed

The New York Times reports that hacker Hector Xavier Monsegur, 30, a.k.a. "Sabu," was sentenced today by federal judge Loretta A. Preska to time served (he had spent seven months in prison in 2012) and was allowed to walk free.

While federal sentencing guidelines had called for a sentence of up to 26 years, prosecutors had cited his "extraordinary cooperation" with the FBI in requesting leniency. According to prosecutors, Monsegur's cooperation led to the arrests of eight "major co-conspirators," including Jeremy Hammond, who was sentenced on November 15, 2013 to 10 years in prison.